It’s important to find a veterinarian early on before you ever need to treat a sick hamster. Not all vets have the expertise to cure hamster illnesses and injuries. Therefore, it’s important you look around to find one that can. It might sound crazy to need a veterinarian for a pet hamster but it’s the right thing to do if you have a sick or injured one on your hands. No one likes to see an animal suffer; no matter how large or small it is. You might think it will be too costly to take your sick pet into the vet but some vets won’t charge as much to cure and treat sick hamsters as they would dogs or cats. It’s wise to ask in advance if the vets would work with you in terms of vet fees. Sometimes all you might need is some professional advice or a broad spectrum antibiotic. Try not to use the cost of a vet visit in determining your treatment methods.
Medicating your Pet
It’s never wise hamster care to medicate your sick pet yourself with home remedies or medicine made for humans. You can easily give an overdose that poisons and kills these little guys. If you get medications from your vet though, it might not be easy to get your ill hamster to take its medicine. Some tips for administering treatment of a reluctant patient include: mixing the meds with it’s favorite food or using a syringe to slowly feed any liquid medicines that it won’t drink on it’s own. Be careful when performing this treatment method though, so as to not induce choking on the liquids.
Read more about specific illnesses and injuries and their proper treatment in the hamster illnesses section.
Author: Tim Winter
i just got home and my hamster (Hammy) was in its cage just laying down breathing really hard so i thought it was sleeping so i opened the cage and normally it would get up so i Knew something was wrong so i took it out & it wouldn’t even walk it body is So weak . it has food & water so i Dont know whats wrong , nor what to do ive called several vets and they Dont help with hamsters
WHAT CAN I DO ? </3
That is too bad that the vets couldn’t help you! I would try keep it comfy by following some of the tips on how to treat a sick hamster. You may need to feed it water through a water dropper if it won’t drink water. It could just be a cold but if it’s older, it could be something more serious. It’s hard to know; especially if a vet can’t even give you advice.
My little hamster, Piper, a Winter White dwarf, is short in breathing and has a dirty bottom, she has no energy and cries (whimpers) when I hold her. I am afraid she is dying. She has always been healthy and active – so sweet and I can’t hardly stand to see her sick. She didn’t want water or food. Is there something I can do at home? Lin
ps. She is 1 year old now….
My little hamster, Piper, a Winter White dwarf, is short in breathing and has a dirty bottom, she has no energy and cries (wimpers) when I hold her. I am afraid she is dying. She has always been healthy and active – so sweet and I can’t hardly stand to see her sick. She didn’t want water or food. Is there something I can do at home? Lin
Your hamster might have a case of diarrhea or worse, wet tail. What you can do to help is to follow the information found on treating a sick hamster and hamster wet tail. More than anything, you need to find a way to get your winter white to drink water. try an eyedropper if you have too. Best of Luck.
Thank you for getting back w/ me. She died today…I did try to get water down but no luck. Amazing how attached you get to these little things…she never got any better.
I’m sorry to hear that and I agree, we do get really attached to our pets no matter how big or small they are. Unfortunately hamsters don’t have a long lifespan. I’m sure your hamster had a good life though since you took good care of her.